The other day I was scrolling through my baby pics and discovered that my new hairstyle isn't so new. This is a pic of 2 year old me. Turns out I'm not fashion forward... or even fashion backward. I'm fashion sidewards.

The only difference (apart from 27 years in age) is I didn't shave the sides of my head back then because 2 year old me only had enough language to say 'long' and chuck a heart-stopping, window-breaking tantrum if Mum Pham did otherwise. I wish she hadn't indulged me because now in adulthood I don't use my decent sized English vocabulary to articulate how I feel. I make whiny noises when I don't like something and roar at people who get in my way.

So tell me honestly, who rocks it better? Mini me or grown up me. I know mini-me dressed better. Hot damn! Look at that tights to dress colour coordination then light long sleeve underlayer to match the light sandals. Why can't I dress like that?

I've always had a drinking problem in that I am too focused on my work to get up and get a glass of water. Even when there's a little part of my brain telling me I'm dying of thirst, I just tell it to stop being overdramatic and keep on working. Little Sissy Pham had to 'water' me when I first got into Diablo III for this very reason. Sometimes I would go a full day on one sip of water and only realise my bad when I stopped working and got hit with a dehydration headache. Yeah, those exist.

But at work, I don't have Little Sissy Pham bringing me regular glasses of water and cups of tea. I've had to step up my water game and I did so in shiny Sigg style. I got this Heritage Sigg 1L drink bottle in Vintage Gold from bodegadeluxe.com - look how pretty the colour is! There is a matte black version that I really wanted too but I lived up to my Shiny Jade mug and went the shiny gold bottle. Also, part of my brain didn't want a drink bottle that matched the boys' cars at work. There's enough matte black already in my world view. I got the whole kit - Sigg bottle cleaning brush and cleaning tablets because cleanliness is next to something that's not dirty, which is important when it's your drinking water. My Sigg gold bottle makes me huppy.

Have you ever tried to kiss yourself on the lips? ...Oh, okay - me either then. But that's where my brain went when I finally got around to Maybelline's Baby Lips in colour range.

As you won't remember from my Nivea Fruity Shine lip balm post, I've been hanging for the Maybelline Baby Lips colour range to drop in Australia. Too bad for me, I'm a stockpiler and had stocked up on Nivea Fruity Shine on sale and am only just starting to run out of juice now.

And I'm so happy to make the switch! Maybelline Baby Lips in colour is just as good as regular clear Baby Lips - you know how sometimes when they change the formula to add fluff details (like glitter or colour) it can affect the moisture? Well, super glad to say that Maybelline Baby Lips Colours are 110% moisturising. I'm sorry Nivea Fruity Shine, you were fun to kiss but now I've got a new favourite!

The Nivea Fruity Shine range has glitter and colour added that affect the smooth moist feel compared to their regular range of lip balm. Somehow Maybelline Baby Lips has managed to keep the moisture at a maximum and - by god - the staying power is even better than the first clear tube of Baby Lips I had.

Interwebs, say hello to my new favourite tinted lip balm - Maybelline Baby Lips in Berry Crush! I still prefer the US range - their packaging is way cooler and colours way bolder and I've read your lips absorbs the moisture whereas the Aussie one I'm currently using sits on top of my lips like a gloss. Oh well, when you live this far away from the rest of the globe, I guess you gotta appreciate what you can get. Or I guess I could just order it in from the States. Lord knows I can't seem to stop giving the Internet money to send me stuff in the mail.

It's Dad Pham's 68th birthday today! 2012-13 has been a bit rough on my papa. He is finally starting to feel his age. Dad Pham used to be Mr. Invincible - never had a health problem. Well, body health issue. Dad's had schizophrenia brought on by PTSD from the Vietnam War since before we were born but that's a story for another day. Today's story is about dad's body health.

Mr Invincible never tripped or walked into furniture so I can't recall him ever having a bruise or scratch. The 'klutz gene' that afflicts Little Sissy Pham and I definitely came from Mum's side of The Phamly. Dad drastically lost weight right after Mum died so we thought it was heartbreak. In a way it could be heartbreak that triggered his type 2 diabetes and the army of polyps in his intestines. He never had health issues when Mum was around. I like to romanticise it and think it's because he needed to be fit to take care of her.

Dad's been in hospital twice so far this year, once scheduled "it's easy, I cleanse, they make me sleep, I wake up and I eat", once emergency "I'm in hospital because my vision's blurry and I eat too much." Yes, Dad Pham has a great way of simplifying his health complications for us. English as a second language may also have something to do with it. His health scare is the real reason I've been nicer to my body lately though saying 'science called me fat' made it sound more fun.

Dad LOVES hospital food an insane amount so he's not too phased by his health scares but it makes me realise these are my final days (I hope years) of having a parent. Some one looking out for me no matter the stupid things I do, who worries when I'm sick and prays I get better, who wants my life to be easy and comfortable, who'll always support me even when they think vegetarianism is a waste of effort and silly.

Happy Mothers Day to all parents out there. Thanks for making us kids!

I'm sure nobody's noticed that I'm blogging about half as much as I used to but I am. And I have a good reason... by good I mean bad. I've been cheating on my blog with another blog that pays for my services. I've become a blogging prostitute! I guess if I enjoy it and feel empowered then it's okay. Jokes aside this is part of my day job: culturekings.com.au/blog. It's way cooler than my personal blog and has, like, socially fashiony musically sporty culturally relevant content but you can see my nerdy influences creepin' in. GoT meme anyone? Support my craft and check out the new Culture Kings blog!